Tunneling of a composite particle: Effects of intrinsic structure

Abstract

We consider simple models of tunneling of an object with intrinsic degrees of freedom. This important problem was not extensively studied until now, in spite of numerous applications in various areas of physics and astrophysics. We show possibilities of enhancement for the probability of tunneling due to the presence of intrinsic degrees of freedom split by weak external fields or by polarizability of the slow composite object.